Friday, January 11, 2008

Friday, Januar 11, 2008
Waxing Moon
Mars Retrograde
Saturn Retrograde
Rainy and cool

My head is so full of information, it’s about to explode. That’s not necessarily a bad thing; I just need to figure out what to do with it all.

And, I was naughty yesterday — no, bring your mind back to what we actually discuss on this blog, the rest isn’t open for viewing! Although it may well be relevant! Instead of working on TRACKING MEDUSA last night, I read Yasmine Galenorn’s DARKLING. And really enjoyed it. I’m a big fan of her series, and this was one of the books I’ve looked forward to most in the past few months.

The day didn’t start out in a promising fashion. I was an hour and a half late getting out of the house — I get up here later than I do at home, and that lost time in the morning is vital. I walked from Rittenhouse Square down to the Historic District. I’d looked up the three places I needed to hit online to make sure of their hours, the fees, etc.

First stop: Historic home. I get there. There’s a little sign on the locked gate saying it’s closed for renovations this week. Now, I checked the website before I left the apartment, and there was nothing on there about it. I was annoyed, to say the least. There was also a sign that suggested visiting the church used by the figure, which was the second stop on my list.

I go to the church. The gate is locked. It’s closed for renovation. Again, there was nothing about it on the website. The sign at the church suggested visiting the cemetary, which was the third stop on my list.

I get there, and it’s locked and there’s a sign saying they decided to close it for January and February. Again, there was nothing on the website about it.

I was not amused. In fact, I was rather in a mood by this time. I stalk down the street to another historical location and follow a guy with a briefcase in the side door. The security guard starts to say something to me, and my response is, “Don’t even.” He backed off immediately with, “Yes, ma’am. I’m sorry, ma’am.” I didn’t actually need to be at Site 4, but it was a good place to wander around and calm down, and I must have carried some serious NY “don’t mess with me” attitude, because the guards all kept a safe distance.

I wandered around soaking up Revolutionary War energy and trying to figure out what to do next. Obviously, I wasn’t supposed to be on those sites. So I left (saying thank you to the startled guards) and wandered around for a bit, letting my feet guide me.

I stopped at a sandwich place for lunch, and, feeling restored, headed to the Historical Society of Philadelphia. They were fantastic there, so nice, so helpful. I spent the afternoon there, and got done the bulk of the microfilm research I needed. I forgot how much of a pain in the ass the microfilm machines are. Digging through all these documents, I found out some pretty interesting stuff — the parents of one figure I’m reserching were called before their congregation on charges of being “intimate” before marriage, and admitted it. Coming across the marriage certificate later, they’d married in New Jersey, not in Philly. I still have to cross check some dates, but I think their first kid or two was born before the marriage. And I’m pretty sure their daughter’s third husband murdered her first two — it’s too much of a coincidence that he just “happened” to be there when they both died — one in Philly and one in England, and No. 3 just “happens” to be there, too? Doesn’t add up to me. I could never prove it — there’s not enough documentation, I’d be building a theory on circumstantial evidence. And the more research I do, the more I think it makes more sense to do this as a novel rather than a non-fiction piece.

I ddin’t talk to any of the History Boys, but they were there. And they were all male. They’re committed and passionate, but they’re going to lose because they lack somethng: Ruthlessness. They’re workig on ideology, and if you’re going to defeat Evil Developers, you have to take the fight to a whole other level and do some serious ass-kicking. I may have to give them a solid talking-to today, since I have some experience in this area. The only other woman researching was on a totally different project, and she sighed every two minutes and muttered to herself until I was ready to rip the microfilm off the reader and strangle her with it. Come on, people, you’re not by yourself, have a little consideration! All the other researchers were extremely considerate.

I’m already late, but I need to go over my notes again before I leave and see which diaries I want to pull and read today. I’d like to get a little writing done, too. I miss the early morning writing. The Horsemen of the Apocalypse story is brewing, the other idea about which I was approached is growing, Jain and Wyatt from Hex Breaker have another adventure to get on, Earth Bride wants attention, and so does The Balthazaar Treasure. My brain feels like a tangled skein of yarn.

But my body’s recovered from the bad fumes — walking around, getting the blood pumping in the air helped a lot. Granted, city air isn’t exactly clean and fresh, but it’s still better than being trapped in a bus full of fumes.

Off to the archives.

Devon

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